Parents are among the most important people in the lives of young children. Parents include mothers and fathers, as well as other caregivers who act as parents. From birth, children rely on parents to provide them with the care they need to be happy and healthy, and to grow and develop well. As parent, I want the best for my children.
HERE ARE SOME COMMON PROBLEMS PARENTS ENCOUNTERED:
- Eating Healthy.
As parents, I want my kids to eat vegetables and fruits, but I also want meals to be pleasant without fighting. All we want for our kids is the best for them. But unfortunately, sometimes it is hard for them to eat nutritious foods like veggies and fruits.
Here are a few simple recommendations health experts say to get kids excited about veggies and fruits.
- Be consistent. Offer vegetables with every lunch and dinner.
- Let kids participate in choosing veggies.
- Serve vegetables kids like.
- Make veggies fun.
- Try kid-friendly veggie recipes.
- Inspire a healthy identity.
- Be a veggie role model.
A healthy diet is essential for good health and nutrition. It protects us against many chronic noncommunicable diseases, such as heart disease, diabetes and cancer.
- Enforcing Rules.
Family rules help children understand what behaviors are okay and not okay. As children grow, they will be in places where they have to follow rules. Following rules at home can help children learn to follow rules in other places. It is normal for children to break rules and test limits.
Here are some tips for enforcing family rules that, ultimately, will help protect your teen:
- Clear Guidelines, Clear Expectations.
- You’re the Parent.
- Stay Calm.
- Be Consistent.
- Trust but Verify.
- Follow Through.
- Positive Reinforcement.
- Connect with Other Parents.
- Aggression.
The review shows that parenting styles have a direct impact on aggression in children. Authoritative parenting styles play a positive role in psychological behavior in children while authoritarian and permissive parenting styles result in aggressive and negative behaviors in children. Child development, or the way in which children grow emotionally, physically, and socially, can be negatively impacted by aggressive parenting, resulting in eating disorders, poor self-esteem, and psychological disorders. Children of aggressive parents may become aggressive parents themselves.
- Telling the Truth.
Honesty is essential to establishing a strong and trusting relationship between parent and child. By consistently being honest with children, parents are able to develop a sense of trust in their child’s mind that will carry over into their adult life.
Lying to them can have a detrimental effect on the trust between parent and child as well as the development of their character. Honesty helps build strong relationships between family members and encourages respect for each other.
By being truthful even when the issue is uncomfortable (such as death, divorce, therapy, disease, and so on), we can show children how to process these experiences, and teach them that even when things are scary, they can trust you and rely on you. Never make a child feel as though they don’t deserve to know the truth.
- Setting Aside Time to Study.
From the time they are young, establishing routines around important activities gets kids to view these activities as important. Before they’re enrolled in school, set aside an hour each evening for reading books. Then, as they grow, they’re used to this and can easily change from reading to completing homework. Make sure the home is conducive to study time. This includes turning off televisions or stereos, setting aside a spot in the house specifically for school work and keeping in touch with their teachers.
Children learn best when the significant adults in their lives — parents, teachers, and other her family and community members — work together to encourage and support them. This basic fact should be a guiding principle as we think about how schools should be organized and how children should be taught. Schools alone cannot address all of a child’s developmental needs: The meaningful involvement of parents and support from the community are essential.
- Sibling Harmony.
All parents want their kids to get along. But few feel confident in their ability to bring that harmony home. But I can promise you, sibling harmony is possible! It may sound like an impossible dream, but it’s absolutely do-able with these 3 Tips.
3 Tips for Sibling Harmony:
Tip #1: Don’t Compare or Label Your Kids
One of the easiest mistakes for parents to make is labeling and comparing our kids. Knowing how you may unintentionally label your kids and fuel competition is a great first step in banishing the bickering in your house.
Tip #2: Spend One-on-One Time Daily with Each Child
The most important strategy to minimize sibling rivalry is to deliberate about daily one-on-one time with each child and build connection.That’s simply ten to fifteen minutes per day when your child has YOU to herself. This short time will go a long way toward reducing sibling competition for your attention.
It’s no secret that well-behaved kids are often ignored, while misbehaving kids get attention.
Tip #3: Be a Mediator, Not a Referee
At this point in parenthood, you may feel as though you should always carry a whistle and invest in a fully-stocked wardrobe of black-and-white striped shirts.
Read:https://www.waldenu.edu/online-masters-programs/ms-in-education/resource/msed-course-insight-parent-mediation-for-sibling-conflict-resolution
- Getting Attention Appropriately.
Kids need attention and it will serve them well to learn how to get it appropriately. It’s normal for children to need attention and approval, and it’s equally appropriate for parents to give them the attention they want. However, attention-seeking becomes a problem when it happens all the time, or if your child’s attention-seeking behavior causes trouble at school or with their peers. Sometimes children learn that the easiest way to get mom and dad to focus on them is to provoke them by misbehaving, which can be hard to break for the whole family.
If you find that your child is acting out in disruptive ways to get your undivided attention, it’s important to understand the causes behind a kid’s need for attention and address their behavior in positive, constructive ways. While some kids are loud or demanding as part of their development, other children may have ADHD or other conditions that cause them to act out. If you want strategies to help deal with and change their — and your — behavior, these dos and don’ts will teach you how to better communicate without getting annoyed.
Do Communicate Clearly
Ask your child if they know why their attention-seeking behavior is wrong, and if they don’t, explain it clearly to them. For example, tell them how much you love them, but you don’t love how they behave. Explain to them what good behavior would be and how much you would appreciate them acting appropriately. Get your child’s attention by being firm, but keep positive parenting in mind when you are talking about your child’s behavior.
Do Focus on the Positive
Instead of waiting for children to have tantrums to pay attention to them, acknowledge them when they are behaving well, and offer positive attention when it happens. Stay alert when your child behaves in a positive way: For example, if they are sitting quietly and coloring without insisting on your approval of every crayon they choose. Say, “I like how you’re working so hard on your artwork,” and then move on.
Do Pay Attention Before They Demand It
Parents are understandably tired after a busy day of work and other responsibilities, but so are children. Take 15 minutes to sit with your child and focus on them without any distractions. Put down the phones, take away the tablets and give your little one your undivided attention. Play board games or read a book together. The whole family doesn’t need to be involved – one on one time is good. It’s been shown that involved parents raise children with positive self-esteem. Your child will bask in your parental attention, and that can help to calm their negative attention-seeking behavior.
Don’t Be Unpredictable
Sometimes you may find it easier to give in to your child’s negative behaviors and give them the attention they are demanding. Still, it’s better if you can react the same way each time they misbehave. Even if your child acting out is an uncomfortable situation for you, such as while eating in a restaurant or visiting friends, stay calm and consistent.
Consistency is key to behavior modification. If, for example, your child is sent to time out only once in a while when they are using attention-seeking behavior, they won’t take the consequence seriously. Children need predictable outcomes to respond to scolding or other consequences.
Don’t Be Afraid to Take Charge
Sometimes parents are afraid to upset their children by standing by their rules and not allowing them to use their negative behavior to get the attention they crave. You are an adult, and your child is waiting for you to teach them how to behave, how to react, and how to get the self-control they need. You can turn punishment for misbehaving into an opportunity to learn in a positive way by giving them something constructive rather than keeping them from doing things they enjoy. Some ideas for consequences include:
Ignore them at the moment. When you ignore misbehaviors, you are giving no attention. Because attention is rewarding to children, withholding attention can be an effective punishment. Have your child write a letter of apology for acting out to teachers or caregivers. Give “etiquette lessons” to children to reinforce the importance of using their “indoor voice” and respecting others
Don’t Ignore the Problem
Ignoring does not mean ignoring the problem. It means ignoring demands for negative attention. There are many misbehaviors that you should not ignore. Some misbehaviors should be punished. Deciding when to ignore or when to punish is not easy, and there are no exact rules. It takes timing and judgment. When your child misbehaves to get attention, ignore it. If your child does not stop in two or three minutes, give him a reminder. Tell your child, “I do not respond to whining. When you stop, we’ll talk.” Wait another minute or two. If he still does not stop, then tell your child to stop or he will be punished: “Stop now, or you will go to time-out.”
If you get angry or let your child push your buttons, you lose. If you must use a punishment, dispense the punishment without anger. If you get angry, then your child has succeeded in getting the negative attention that he was after. If you feel yourself getting angry, walk away. Cool off.
The key to changing your child’s behavior begins with how you communicate with them and continues with your consistent and loving discipline. Whether you are dealing with young children or a 13-year-old daughter or 16 year-old-son, positive parenting and parental attention are the first steps to encouraging good behavior.
- Raising Self-Esteem.
Life is hard. Even when children are showered with love and affection, they sometimes feel discouraged. This is especially true once they start school. Parents help by staying attentive. Pay attention to what your kids like to do and encourage them in a variety of ways. Help them to value themselves by praising them for displaying a strong work ethic, humor, talent and kindness. Children who feel loved and valued at home tend to do better when discouraged.
How Parents Can Build Self-Esteem
- Help your child learn to do things. At every age, there are new things for kids to learn.
- When teaching kids how to do things, show and help them at first.
- Praise your child, but do it wisely.
- Be a good role model.
- Ban harsh criticism.
- Focus on strengths.
- Let kids help and give
- Reducing Screen Time
Children can get hooked on digital devices and this naturally worries the adults in their lives. Setting boundaries before they get their first phone, or any electronic device, is easier than trying to establish rules afterward. What are your expectations? Determine how much time to allow them to spend online. Establish a system for when they want to try new apps or games and need permission. Some parents write up a contract so both parties know what the rules are, and what the consequences are if those rules are broken.
REad: https://timekidspreschools.in/parenting-blog/?p=304
- Staying Positive
Whether you are the parent of a baby or a teenager, we can all agree that parenting is a challenge! It can be wonderful one day and then exhausting, stressful and overwhelming the next. Staying positive is so difficult but as parents we should learn how to be more positive parents.
Below are helpful tips we should learn:
- Change Your Perspective.
- Lower Your Expectations.
- Remind Yourself the Phase Will Pass.
- Share Emotional Responsibility.
- Connect Instead of Correct.
- Coach Instead of Control.
- See Through Your Child’s Eyes.
- Parent the Child You Have.
How do we encourage children to be positive?
Tips to encourage positive behavior
- Give your child positive attention and spend quality time together.
- Be a role model.
- Tell your child how you feel.
- Catch your child being ‘good’ .
- Get down to your child’s level.
- Listen actively.
- Keep promises.
- Create an environment for positive behavior.
Read https://www.verywellfamily.com/ways-to-make-parenting-easier-4101922